Wireless authentication methods and apparatus

ABSTRACT

A first processing device, which may be, for example, a wireless authentication token or an RFID tag, transmits information in a wireless network in a manner that emulates standard communications of an access point of the wireless network, although the first processing device is not configured to operate as an actual access point of the wireless network. A second processing device, which may be, for example, a computer or other station of the wireless network, receives the transmitted information and is able to determine therefrom that the information originates from an emulated access point rather than an actual access point. The second processing device responds to this condition by utilizing the transmitted information in a manner distinct from its utilization of similar information received from the actual access point of the wireless network.

RELATED APPLICATION(S)

The present application claims the priority of U.S. Provisional PatentApplication Ser. No. 60/764,826, filed Feb. 3, 2006 and entitled “TheRFID Authenticator,” which is incorporated by reference herein.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to wireless communicationsystems, and more particularly to authentication, encryption or otherprotocols involving wireless authentication tokens or other types ofwireless processing devices.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The growing need for better user authentication is drawing increasedattention to technologies such as one-time passwords. In a one-timepassword system, a user typically carries a device or “token” thatgenerates and displays a series of passwords over time. The user readsthe currently displayed password and enters it into a personal computer,e.g., via a Web browser, as part of an authentication operation. Such asystem offers a significant improvement over conventional password-basedauthentication since the password is dynamic and random. Previouslymisappropriated one-time passwords are of no help to an attacker indetermining the current password, which remains hard to guess.

One particular example of a one-time password device of the typedescribed above is the RSA SecurID® user authentication token,commercially available from RSA, The Security Division of EMCCorporation, of Bedford, Mass., U.S.A. For a number of years, SecurID®has been the dominant solution in two factor authentication. Itsrelative simplicity combined with its independence from client-sidesoftware has contributed in no small measure to its success in manylarge enterprises. In a typical embodiment, a SecurID® authenticationtoken may comprise a small handheld device with an LCD screen thatdisplays a new one-time tokencode consisting of six to eight decimaldigits every 60 seconds. An ordinary user would utilize this tokencode,possibly in combination with a personal identification number (PIN) withthe resulting combination called a passcode, instead of a staticpassword to access secure resources. Each displayed tokencode is basedon a secret seed and the current time of day. Any verifier with accessto the seed and a time of day clock can verify that the presentedtokencode is valid.

A wireless authentication token, that is, a token that transmitsauthentication information over the air rather than via the user, canoffer many attractions. Such a token can alleviate much of the burden onusers in manually entering tokencodes or other authenticationinformation. It can also achieve considerably higher transmissionbandwidth, opening up a range of new functions beyond simpleauthentication, such as encryption. Wireless tokens can offer severalother potential advantages as well, such as hands-free authenticationfor physically demanding environments like hospitals and factory floors,and rapid fire authentication for temporally demanding situations, suchas online auctions.

Conventional aspects of wireless authentication tokens are described in,for example, M. Corner, “Transient Authentication for Mobile Devices,”PhD Thesis, University of Michigan, 2003. The approach disclosed thereinis designed to protect information on mobile devices such as laptopsfrom exposure in the event of theft or loss. Its authentication protocolutilizes bidirectional communication between mobile devices andauthentication tokens. Such an approach is problematic, however, in thatauthentication tokens that accept input in their authenticationprotocols can be vulnerable to active attacks.

Accordingly, a need exists for a wireless authentication token or otherwireless processing device that can provide the convenience of wirelesscommunication but also provide enhanced security in authentication andother cryptographic operations.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention in an illustrative embodiment comprises a wirelessauthentication token that provides authentication information to acomputer by “tunneling” such information in otherwise standardcommunications of a wireless local area network protocol such as IEEE802.11.

In accordance with one aspect of the invention, a wirelessauthentication token, RFID tag or other processing device is configuredfor use in a wireless network comprising at least one access point andone or more stations. The processing device comprises a memory, aprocessor coupled to the memory, and network interface circuitry coupledto the processor. The processor is operative to control the transmissionof information via the network interface circuitry in a manner thatemulates standard communications of an access point of the wirelessnetwork, although the first processing device is not configured tooperate as an actual access point of the wireless network. Anotherprocessing device receives the transmitted information and is able todetermine therefrom that the transmitted information originates from anemulated access point rather than an actual access point. The otherprocessing device responds to this condition by utilizing thetransmitted information in a manner distinct from its utilization ofsimilar information received from the actual access point of thewireless network.

In the above-noted illustrative embodiment, the processing device thatreceives the transmitted information, also referred to as a secondprocessing device, is a computer or other station of the wirelessnetwork, and responds to the condition by extracting authenticationinformation from the transmitted information and initiating anauthentication process using the authentication information. Theauthentication information may comprise, for example, a one-timepassword generated by the first processing device.

The transmitted information in this embodiment is transmitted in amanner compliant with the 802.11 standard under which the wirelessnetwork operates. More specifically, the transmitted information maycomprise at least one of an 802.11 beacon frame and an 802.11 proberesponse frame. Authentication information or other types of informationcan be advantageously carried at least in part in an SSID field of oneor more beacon frames or probe response frames. The authenticationinformation is preferably encrypted prior to transmission using a keyestablished through a pairing protocol carried out between the first andsecond processing devices. Such a pairing protocol may, for example,support key confirmation by allowing a user to compare a confirmationcode produced by the first processing device with a confirmation codeproduced by the second processing device. The pairing protocol may alsoor alternatively utilize a trusted server to authorize pairing of thefirst processing device with the second processing device.

The transmitted information may also or alternatively be used, forexample, to provide joint authentication of the first and secondprocessing devices, to permit the second processing device to performencryption and decryption operations under control of the firstprocessing device, to allow the second processing device to generate adigital signature on behalf of both the first and second processingdevices, or to perform other cryptographic functions.

The techniques of the illustrative embodiments overcome one or more ofthe problems associated with the conventional techniques describedpreviously. For example, the illustrative embodiments described abovecan be implemented in the form of an output-only wireless authenticationtoken, thereby providing enhanced security relative to conventionalwireless tokens. In addition, such a wireless authentication tokenleverages existing 802.11 interface circuitry that is present in a widevariety of processing devices. Furthermore, the wireless authenticationtoken requires only lightweight computation and communication resources,and is therefore suitable for low-power operation.

These and other features and advantages of the present invention willbecome more readily apparent from the accompanying drawings and thefollowing detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an exemplary one-time password system in anillustrative embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2 shows one possible implementation of a wireless authenticationtoken of the FIG. 1 system.

FIG. 3 is a flow diagram illustrating exemplary communications between awireless authentication token and a computer in conjunction with anauthentication protocol in an illustrative embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present invention will be described herein with reference to anexample one-time password system in which a wireless authenticationtoken emulates standard wireless communication messages of an accesspoint to transmit authentication information. It is to be appreciated,however, that the invention is not restricted to use in this or anyother particular system configuration.

Additional details regarding certain conventional cryptographictechniques referred to herein may be found in, e.g., A. J. Menezes etal., Handbook of Applied Cryptography, CRC Press, 1997, which isincorporated by reference herein.

The term “password” as used herein is intended to be construed broadly,so as to encompass any type of authentication information that may berequired in order to obtain access to an access-controlled applicationor other resource. Thus, the term is intended to encompass, for example,tokencodes, passcodes or other numeric or alphanumeric codes, sets ofwords, sentences, phrases, answers to questions, responses tochallenges, or any other type of authentication information.

Also, although the illustrative embodiments are described in the contextof one-time passwords, that is, passwords that are typically used onlyfor a single access, other embodiments can use passwords that are notlimited to single use, that is, passwords that each can be used for twoor more accesses.

The present invention in an illustrative embodiment provides an improvedone-time password device comprising an output-only wirelessauthentication token that does not accept external input in itsauthentication protocol. Alternative embodiments are not limited to suchoutput-only wireless authentication tokens.

FIG. 1 shows a one-time password system 100 in one embodiment of theinvention. The system 100 includes a wireless authentication token 102,a computer 104 and a network 106. The wireless authentication token 102is able to communicate with the computer 104 via a wireless connection,as will be described in greater detail below. The computer 104communicates with network 106 in a conventional manner, which mayutilize a wired or wireless connection.

The wireless authentication token 102 may be in the form of an otherwiseconventional handheld authentication token, such as a key fob, or may bein the form of an RFID tag or other type of stand-alone authenticationtoken. Alternatively, it may be incorporated in or implemented in theform of another type of processing device, such as a mobile telephone,personal digital assistant (PDA), wireless email device, multimediaplayer, handheld or portable computer, game system, etc.

Techniques for incorporating one-time password functionality into amultimedia player are disclosed in U.S. patent application Ser. No.11/556,506, filed Nov. 3, 2006 and entitled “Password Presentation forMultimedia Devices,” which is commonly assigned herewith andincorporated by reference herein. The present invention may make use ofaudio, video or other multimedia passwords, as described therein.

The computer 104 may be a desktop or portable personal computer, amicrocomputer, a workstation, a mainframe computer, a wired telephone, atelevision set top box, a game system, a kiosk, or any other processingdevice which can serve as an intermediary between a given wirelessauthentication token 102 and the network 106. Certain processing devicesmay comprise dual functionality, that is, may include both wirelessauthentication token capabilities for authenticating themselves to otherdevices, while also including capabilities for authenticating otherwireless authentication tokens.

Thus, it is to be appreciated that elements such as 102 and 104 in thesystem 100 need not take any particular physical form. A wide variety ofdifferent system configurations are possible. For instance, a wirelessauthentication token could be used to authorize a mobile telephone toplace a call over a wireless network. Similarly, the wirelessauthentication token could comprise software running on a PDA or mobiletelephone authenticating the user to a vending machine in a wirelesspayments scenario.

It is assumed in this embodiment that the network 106 is an Internetprotocol (IP) network, and such a network may comprise, for example, aglobal computer network such as the Internet, a wide area ormetropolitan area network, or various portions or combinations of theseand other types of networks. Moreover, the computer 104 communicateswith an access point 108 using a standard wireless local area network(WLAN) communication protocol, which in the present embodiment isassumed to be in accordance with the IEEE 802.11 standard, also commonlyknown as “Wi-Fi.” The 802.11 standard is described in, for example, IEEEStandard 802.11, Wireless LAN Medium Access Control (MAC) and PhysicalLayer (PHY) Specifications, 1999 Edition, which is incorporated byreference herein. The term “802.11 standard” as used herein is intendedto be construed generally, so as to encompass individual portions of802.11, such as 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, etc. and their respectivestandard documents are hereby incorporated herein by reference.

The access point 108 may also be coupled to the IP network 106, asshown, although it may be alternatively be connected to a separate IPnetwork or other type of network. The access point 108 is assumed topart of a WLAN that includes one or more access points and one or morestations. The computer 104 may be viewed as representing one particularstation of the WLAN in the present illustrative embodiment.

The network 106 is assumed to have associated therewith a validationservice or other type of authentication authority that is capable ofauthenticating passwords submitted via the computer 104. Such anauthority may be configured in a well-known conventional manner. It maycomprise, for example, one or more servers accessible over the network106, such as an authentication server 110.

The computer 104 as shown includes a processor 112, a memory 114 and anumber of network interfaces 116. One such network interface is utilizedfor communicating in a conventional manner with the IP network 106,while another is used for communicating in a conventional manner withaccess point 108 over the WLAN. In the illustrative embodiment, thenetwork interface that the computer utilizes to communicate with accesspoint 108 over the WLAN is also utilized to receive authenticationinformation from the wireless authentication token 102, as will bedescribed in greater detail below in conjunction with the flow diagramof FIG. 3.

Although the wireless authentication token 102 and computer 104 areshown as separate devices in FIG. 1, other embodiments of the inventionmay combine the functionality of these elements into a single processingdevice. For example, a given wireless authentication token may beconfigured to connect to the network 106 via a wireless connectionestablished with the access point 108, without the use of a separateintermediary device such as computer 104. In such an arrangement, theaccess point 108 may be configured to extract authentication informationfrom frames transmitted by the wireless authentication token.

It is to be appreciated that a given embodiment of the system 100 mayinclude multiple instances of wireless authentication token 102,computer 104, network 106, access point 108 and authentication server110, as well as additional or alternative elements, although only singleinstances of elements 102, 104, 106, 108 and 110 are shown in the systemdiagram for clarity of illustration.

FIG. 2 shows a more detailed view of the wireless authentication token102 of FIG. 1. As indicated above, such a device is an example of whatis more generally referred to herein as a processing device. Thewireless authentication token 102 in this implementation includes aprocessor 200 coupled to a memory 202 and to interface circuitry 204.These device elements may be implemented in whole or in part as aconventional microprocessor, digital signal processor,application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) or other type ofcircuitry, as well as portions or combinations of such circuitryelements. The interface circuitry 204 is coupled to an antenna 206. Theinterface circuitry 204 communicates via antenna 206 with acorresponding network interface 116 of the computer 104.

The wireless authentication token 102 as shown includes one or morecontrol buttons 208. A given such button may be used, for example, tocause the wireless authentication token to transmit authenticationinformation to the computer 104. In other embodiments, such buttons maybe eliminated entirely, with the wireless authentication tokenautonomously controlling its communication functions without userintervention, for example, based on automatic detection of proximity ofthe token to the computer, sensor activation, periodic or continuoustransmission, etc. For example, continuous transmission may beadvantageous to users in physical environments that favor hands-freeauthentication, e.g., fast-paced medical environments and factoryfloors. It should be noted, however, that the lack of user initiationincreases the risk of relay and replay attacks.

Hybrid arrangements may also be used. For example, a dual-use token maybe configured to generate output in response to a button press by theuser as well as to generate output based on proximity detection or otherautomatic technique. As another example, a dual-use token may generateoutput in response to button activation, but may be “locked” to transmitcontinuously if desired. Such hybrid tokens are advantageous in thatthey allow the user to choose a tradeoff between security andconvenience.

As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, portions of awireless authentication technique in accordance with an embodiment ofthe invention can be implemented at least in part in the form of one ormore software programs that are stored in memory 202 and executed by thecorresponding processor 200. Thus, the memory 202, in addition tostoring seeds or other information used to generate one-time passwordsor other authentication information, may be used to store programinstructions and other information used to perform operations associatedwith generation, transmission and other processing of suchauthentication information. Memory 202 may comprise, for example,multiple physically-separate storage elements of various types,including random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), Flash orother non-volatile memory, disk-based memory, etc. in any combination.

The wireless authentication token 102 is advantageously configured totransmit authentication information to the computer 104 by emulating anactual access point of the WLAN. More specifically, in this embodimentthe processor 200 of the wireless authentication token is operative tocontrol the transmission of information via the network interfacecircuitry 204 in a manner that emulates standard communications of theaccess point 108 of the WLAN, although the wireless authentication tokenitself is not configured to operate as an actual access point of theWLAN. A given station of the WLAN that receives the transmittedinformation, such as computer 104, is able to determine that thetransmitted information originates from an emulated access point ratherthan an actual access point. The computer 104 responds to this conditionby utilizing the transmitted information in conjunction with a protocolthat is not part of the standard communications. For example, thecomputer in the present embodiment may extract a one-time password orother authentication information from the transmitted information andinitiate an authentication process using the extracted authenticationinformation.

The communications of the wireless authentication token in the presentembodiment emulate communications compliant with the 802.11 standard.For example, as will be described in greater detail below, thetransmitted information may comprise an 802.11 beacon frame or proberesponse frame, with the one-time password or other authenticationinformation being carried at least in part in a Service Set Identifier(SSID) field of the beacon frame or probe response frame. As indicatedpreviously, such information may be transmitted, for example, responsiveto a user command entered via one of the control buttons 208, or may betransmitted periodically or continuously without user intervention. Theauthentication information may be encrypted by the wirelessauthentication token prior to transmission using a key establishedthrough interaction with the computer.

This approach exploits the methods by which 802.11 stations determinewhich wireless networks in range offer service. 802.11 wireless accesspoints and ad-hoc network participants advertise their existence bysending out beacon frames, which are unsolicited management frames sentto a broadcast address, and probe response frames, which are sent inresponse to probe frames sent out by stations seeking access points orother stations with which to potentially associate. Beacon frames andprobe response frames contain many data fields. The present embodimentutilizes the SSID field, which in conventional practice is typicallyused to indicate the natural language name of a network (e.g., “RSA LabsWireless”), to carry authentication information. The SSID field can begiven an arbitrary value and will still be received and propagatedunchanged up the protocol stack by commodity 802.11 hardware and driverson Windows platforms and other platforms.

The SSID field is not the only 802.11 field that could be used fortransmission. For example, the 6-byte network MAC address, the up to8-byte supported rates field, the 8-byte timestamp, the 2-byte beaconinterval, the 2-byte capabilities field, or a combination of these couldalso or alternatively be used. The smaller size of these fields andtheir greater import in the 802.11 link layer indicates that the SSID islikely better suited for use in the illustrative embodiment. Anotherexample, described in the attached Appendix, involves using the trafficindication map field of the beacon frame. See the Appendix foradditional details regarding these and other fields of beacon frames. Asanother example, vendor specific fields of up to 255 bytes can also beappended to probe response frames and used to carry authenticationinformation.

It is therefore to be appreciated that, in other embodiments,authentication information may be carried in other types of 802.11fields or frames. However, as indicated above, the SSID field is one ofthe few 802.11 fields that is necessarily made available to higherlayers in the same form in which it was received. Thus, it isparticularly well suited for carrying authentication information from amanagement frame up the protocol stack to a user-mode application.

The wireless authentication 102 in this embodiment thus sends messagesby advertising itself as an ad-hoc network participant, sending out oneor more beacon frames or probe response frames upon activation. The SSIDfield identifies the frame as part of the authentication protocol andcarries whatever cryptographic payload is necessary to authenticate thetoken to the computer. Software on the computer continuously searchesfor access points; when one is found whose SSID identifies it as havingcome from a token, it delivers the cryptographic payload in that fieldto higher-layer security applications. The SSID field is at most 32bytes long. This is a very small payload by networking standards, but itis large enough to carry small payloads such as a one-time password orsymmetric cryptographic key. In fact, this technique of sending apayload using unconventional 802.11 fields could be applied to otherareas such as sensor networks where power consumption is far moreimportant than large data payloads. To further increase throughput, thetoken can masquerade as two or more access points to increase the numberof payloads sent. For its part, the computer could reconstruct thefragmented message from the various payloads. The throughput of thiscommunication channel could be further enhanced using anerror-correcting code. In practice, we can expect that some datapayloads will be lost. Depending on the relative size of the message andthe fragments, an error-correcting code could provide the ability torecover from the loss of a fragment.

With this approach, only a small, exceptionally simple subset of 802.11need be implemented in the wireless authentication token to send beaconframes and probe response frames.

Referring now to the flow diagram of FIG. 3, the process ofcommunicating authentication information from the wirelessauthentication token 102 to the computer 104 in the present illustrativeembodiment is shown in greater detail.

In step 302, the wireless authentication token 102 is in a low-powersleep mode, which may be its normal configuration in order to conservepower.

In step 304, the token wakes up and transmits one or more frames ofinformation in a manner which emulates standard communications of a WLANaccess point, such as access point 108 in the system 100. These actionsmay be taken, for example, responsive to a user command, responsive todetected proximity to the computer 104, in accordance with anestablished rate of periodic transmission, or based on one or more othercriteria or combinations thereof.

In step 306, the computer receives the one or more transmitted framesfrom the authentication token. The frames may be, for example, beaconframes or probe response frames, or combinations of both, as describedabove. As the token transmits the frames in a manner which emulates anaccess point of the WLAN, the frames are initially received andprocessed by the particular network interface 116 of the computer thatwould ordinarily communicate with WLAN access points.

In step 308, the computer processes the frame SSID to determine if theSSID is associated with a wireless authentication token. For example,the computer may store information specifying one or more features thatdistinguish a token SSID from an SSID of an actual access point. Any ofa number of techniques may be used for this purpose, including providingthe token SSID with a particular predetermined prefix or suffix, anerror-correcting code or other distinguishing pattern. The computercould, for example, store a list of such distinguishing patterns forrespective tokens.

If the frame SSID indicates an association with a wirelessauthentication token rather than an actual access point, the computerextracts a one-time password or other authentication information fromthe one or more frames, and initiates an authentication process usingthe extracted authentication information, as indicated in step 310.

If the frame SSID does not indicate an association with a wirelessauthentication token, the computer processes the one or more frames asit would any ordinary WLAN access point frames, such as frames receivedvia the WLAN from the access point 108.

The respective processor and memory elements 112 and 114 may beconfigured to implement the computer portion of the authenticationinformation communication protocol shown in the flow diagram of FIG. 3.For example, the memory 114 may be used to store the above-noted list ofdistinguishing patterns that are used to identify SSIDs that correspondto respective wireless authentication tokens, and the processor 112 canbe configured under software control to control the operationsassociated with steps 308, 310 and 312 of the communication protocol.

Additional details regarding the illustrative embodiment described abovein conjunction with the flow diagram of FIG. 3, as well as otheralternatives and variants, can be found in the attached Appendix.

It is to be appreciated that, although the information transmitted bythe wireless authentication token 102 in the present embodimentcomprises authentication information, such as a one-time password, thecommunication protocol shown in FIG. 3 is more generally applicable to awide variety of other communication contexts. In an example of a moregeneral communication context, the wireless authentication token may beany processing device that emulates standard communications of an accesspoint of a wireless network, and the transmitted information may be anytype of information that is to be conveyed from the processing device toa station of the wireless network, or more generally, to anotherprocessing device via the wireless network. As another example, theapproach disclosed herein may be adapted for use in communicatingadditional information via 802.11 frames using a processing device thatalready has a conventional 802.11 connection. Such an arrangement canserve as a mechanism for in effect establishing a second channel of802.11 communications capable of carrying arbitrary information.

The wireless authentication token in the above-described embodiment maybe viewed as a type of output-only authentication token, in that itparticipates in an authentication protocol without accepting input aspart of that protocol. More particularly, it simply generates andtransmits a one-time password or other authentication informationwithout any external input influencing the generation of theauthentication information. Such an arrangement advantageously providesenhanced security against active attacks, relative to conventionalwireless authentication tokens that accept input in the course of theirauthentication protocols. It should be noted, however, thatbidirectional communication may be used at a higher protocol layer, suchas a network layer or a layer associated with initialization or keyestablishment, without compromising security.

Another advantage of the above-described embodiment is that it supportsexisting hardware and protocols. For example, it leverages the existing802.11 WLAN interface circuitry that is present in the computer 104. Thewireless authentication token 102 interfaces with standard computersenabled for 802.11 communications. The token requires no special-purposehardware or drivers and fits with existing modes of 802.11 operation.Moreover, it can function in a manner that is completely transparent toauthentication servers.

Yet another advantage of this approach is that it requires onlylightweight computation and communication resources in the wirelessauthentication token. This facilitates its implementation in the form ofhandheld tokens, RFID tags or other configurations subject to powerconstraints or other limited resources.

The illustrative embodiment thus permits the use of standard,off-the-shelf 802.11 hardware and software drivers for computer 104while avoiding unnecessary protocol complexity in a low-poweredimplementation of wireless token 102.

Although described in the context of 802.11, the techniques of theinvention may be implemented using other types of wireless communicationstandards, including, for example, Bluetooth, wireless USB, Zigbee,802.15.3, 802.15.4, etc. As a more particular example, it is noted that802.15.4 defines alternative MAC and physical layers with various datatransmission methods to reduce duty cycles in different scenarios. SeeJ. Zheng and M. J. Lee, “Will IEEE 802.15.4 make ubiquitous networking areality?,” IEEE Communications Magazine, June 2004. However, unlike802.11, 802.15.4 is not ubiquitous in currently available computers andother processing devices, and thus may present additional implementationchallenges if utilized to implement a wireless authentication token ofthe type disclosed herein.

Other aspects of the present invention provide protocols by which awireless authentication token such as token 102 can support encryption.Such encryption, although not a requirement of the invention, may beimplemented using an initial key-establishment protocol or other type ofpairing protocol between the token and computer, as will be described.

Although it was assumed above that the token 102 is output-only at theauthentication protocol layer, different such tokens may have differentnetwork layer characteristics. By way of example, these can beclassified based on characteristics such as neighbor discovery andtransmission type.

With regard to neighbor discovery, a given token may be considered blindor reactive. A blind tag emits authentication information withoutawareness of which receivers are currently reachable, while a reactivetoken may utilize dynamic knowledge of local network topology to tailorits outputs to particular receivers.

With regard to transmission type, a given token may be consideredpromiscuous or targeted. A promiscuous tag emits authenticationinformation to all discoverable devices in its vicinity, while atargeted tag transmits only to devices on a stored “whitelist” ofpermissible devices. Hybrids are possible of course, such as promiscuoustokens which transmit to all devices other than those on a stored“blacklist.”

Tokens with these and other characteristics may be implemented using thetechniques disclosed herein, as will be appreciated by those skilled inthe art.

Pairing Protocols for Initialization and Key Establishment

A number of exemplary pairing protocols will now be described. Suchprotocols are used, for example, to initialize secure communicationsbetween wireless token 102 and computer 104 and to facilitate theestablishment of shared keys.

In the following description, the computer 104 will be referred to as amobile device or simply a “mobile” for purposes of illustration. Thisnomenclature should not be construed as requiring that the computer be amobile device. To the contrary, as indicated previously herein thecomputer may be a relatively immobile device such as a desktop computer.A given key-establishment protocol or other type of pairing protocol asdescribed below therefore may involve four entities, denoted token,user, mobile and server. With reference to the system 100 of FIG. 1 aspreviously described, the mobile may be viewed as an example of computer104, and the server may be viewed as an example of authentication server110.

A fundamental goal in a given pairing protocol is to establish a shared,secret, encryption key K_(t,m) between a token t and a mobile device m.The encryption key K_(t,m) secures tokencodes or other transmittedauthentication information against passive eavesdroppers. It also mayprovide message integrity against active attackers. In addition, such akey can provide access control in that by allowing the mobile to decrypttokencodes, the token effectively authorizes the mobile to receive them.

Given multiple pairings between the same token and multiple mobiles m₁,. . . , m_(k), the keys K_(t,m) ₁ , . . . , K_(t,m) _(k) may, of course,be related in various ways. These keys might derive from a master secretK_(t) in the token, a variant that may be of particular interest forpromiscuous tokens. In a very simple architecture, all keys (K_(t,m)_(j) ) might be set to K_(t) itself. In some cases, such as those inwhich key insulation is of interest, we may wish to consider a timeparameter i for keys, and write K^((i)) _(t,m).

The same protocol used for establishment of an encryption key K_(t,m)may also serve for establishment of a key for standalone token-to-mobileauthentication.

The pairing protocol should establish any network-configuration dataneeded for the token to form valid network frames to carry itsauthentication information. For example, in an illustrative embodiment,the mobile and token may learn each other's MAC addresses.

In some cases, particularly in an enterprise setting, it may bedesirable for an authenticating server to learn what pairings have beenestablished. A given pairing protocol may involve a trusted server inthe pairing process, such that the server learns pairing events bydefault.

It may also be desirable for the pairing protocol to support keyconfirmation. This may involve, for example, user verification ofcorrect pairing in order to protect against an active attack or a useror machine error. One possible implementation may perform keyconfirmation by comparing confirmation codes produced by the token and apaired mobile device.

The pairing protocol may also be configured to support revocation of theability of a given mobile to receive or process token authenticationinformation. For example, upon pairing with a new mobile, a targetedtoken might receive from the server an updated whitelist of mobiles.

Mobiles that explicitly broadcast their network identification data areoften referred to as “discoverable.” In the illustrative embodiment,software on the mobile may be used to perform active probing. Forexample, the mobile may send out a particular type of MAC-layermanagement command called a probe request frame, typically used todiscover new access points. In so doing, it broadcasts its MAC address,allowing the token to learn the MAC address without disrupting existingwireless connections. In fact, as mobiles listen for responsesimmediately after emitting probes, a token that transmits a tokencode toa mobile as it learns the device's MAC address will have a highprobability of successful tokencode receipt. Such a token is an exampleof a reactive token.

Privacy concerns associated with surreptitious tracking of mobiles maybe addressed by allowing for rotating pseudonyms, for example, usingtechniques such as those described in U.S. patent application Ser. No.10/782,309 filed Feb. 19, 2004 and entitled “Low-ComplexityCryptographic Techniques for use with Radio Frequency IdentificationDevices,” which is commonly assigned herewith and incorporated byreference herein.

This type of approach can be especially useful if the token has a timeof day clock, in that once provisioned with keying material, a tokencould derive the mobile's current MAC address as a function of the keyand the current time of day. As plans to enlarge the MAC address spaceare implemented, the odds of randomly selecting one that causes a namingcollision in the local subnet is extremely small.

Similarly, the network behavior of a token may dictate its cryptographicdesign, such as the procedure by which the token is paired with amobile, the nature of the resulting shared key, and the cryptographicprotocol used to transmit authentication information.

For example, if a token t is promiscuous, then it might use the sameencryption key for all mobiles. Preferably, though, the token couldderive unique token-mobile encryption keys dynamically. In this case,the token may employ on-the-fly harvesting of the identification andnetwork configuration data of nearby mobile devices, such as their MACaddresses. It can then derive an encryption key K_(t,m) for each mobilem by, e.g., applying a key-derivation function to a master secret andm's MAC address. If a token derives keys dynamically in this way, thenthe token-mobile pairing process need simply configure mobile m withK_(t,m). Only a mobile m with knowledge of K_(t,m) is then able toreceive the promiscuously broadcast authentication information of thetoken, such as encrypted tokencodes.

As noted above, a given token may be configured to accept direct userinput, for example, via a control button 208. Such input can be valuablein a pairing protocol by, for example, allowing the user to signal theintention to pair or to confirm the correctness of a displayed value.

In a token that accepts user input for other purposes like data-originauthentication, this interface could be re-purposed for initialization,especially when supported by a key-distribution infrastructure for themobile. Assume that a token and an authentication server arepre-provisioned with a symmetric key k. Then to initialize the token'suse with a new mobile, the user could key-in identifying andnetwork-configuration data corresponding to the mobile. This data isoften much shorter than a cryptographic key, and could be used with k tobootstrap the new connection, taking the assumption that the attackerisn't eavesdropping on this channel. For instance, in an illustrativeembodiment, a 48-bit MAC address plays both identification andnetwork-configuration roles. The token can then use a simple keyderivation function (KDF) like H(k,ID_(m)) to uniquely derive a key forthis relationship, where H( ) denotes a cryptographic function. For itspart, the mobile can request H(k,ID_(m)) from the server.

The user is implicitly trusted because of physical presence. It ispossible that an attacker could borrow the token and perform the samesteps, pointing to a need for the possibility of a second factor notonly in the overall user-authentication decision but also for the tokento accept a new pairing assignment.

As indicated above, a given mobile may comprise, for example, a laptop,mobile telephone, handheld game system, or other portable electronicdevice. Each of these offers a user interface more robust than that of atypical authentication token. Any of a number of pairing protocols withkey confirmation can achieve key establishment secure againstman-in-the-middle attacks. See, for example, J.-H. Hoepman, “Theephemeral pairing problem,” in Financial Cryptography '04, Lecture Notesin Computer Science, pages 212-226, Springer-Verlag, 2004. Such pairingprotocols rely on a confirmation procedure whereby the user ensures thatthe two devices arrive at identical checksums. To ensure secure pairing,the user can key into the mobile a code that is pre-printed or displayedon the token, or else compare a displayed value on the token with one onthe mobile.

As mentioned previously, bidirectional communication between the tokenand the mobile may be used for initial pairing. By way of example, thetoken can establish an ad hoc 802.11 connection with the mobile,temporarily breaking any existing wireless connection of the mobile. Thetoken can then record the MAC address of the mobile while furnishing themobile with a shared encryption key, or taking the KDF approachdescribed above. The token and mobile may exchange messages, forexample, sending identifying data for use in the KDF scheme, directlysending a key in the clear, or using a key-exchange mechanism.

It is possible to use a public-key algorithm like Diffie-Hellman withpublic-key certificates to establish identity, although such an approachis computationally intensive and cannot definitively confirm that thetwo devices are the particular devices the user wants to pair at a givenpoint in time.

Symmetric-key arrangements may alternatively be used. As a simpleexample, the mobile and token could generate and transmit random stringsR_(m) and R_(t), respectively. Each then takes the XOR of the twostrings to derive a shared key K_(tm). If the token, for instance, has ashorter broadcast range than the mobile, this approach could modestlyreduce the range at which a passive attacker could operate. To thwartactive attackers, the token and mobile could both display the hash ofthe shared key for confirmation by the user.

A trusted server may be made available during pairing. For example, theabove-described simple symmetric-key protocol may be expanded to allowfor explicit server authorization of token-mobile pairing with only twomessages over the air. The token could compute R_(t)=H (K_(ts), T_(t))where K_(ts) is a key shared by the mobile and server, and T_(t) is acounter or the current time of day. Using an authenticated and encryptedchannel, the mobile passes its own identity ID_(m), the identity ID_(t)of the token, a nonce R_(m), and R_(t) along to the server. The serververifies R_(t), and computes A_(st)=H(K_(ts), T_(t), ID_(m)) andK_(tm)=H(K_(ts), T_(t), ID_(m), R_(m)), both for conveyance to themobile. Then, the mobile passes R_(m) and A_(st) along to the token,which verifies the server's hash and computes K_(tm). As above, thetoken and mobile could display the hash of K_(tm) for confirmation orrejection by the user.

Device pairing may alternatively be based on physical proximity orcontact between the token and the mobile. This physical presence isassumed to be sufficient authorization for pairing. See, for example, F.Stajano and R. Anderson, “The resurrecting duckling: Security issues forad-hoc wireless networks,” in 7th International Workshop on SecurityProtocols, vol. 1796 of Lecture Notes in Computer Science, pages172-194, Springer-Verlag, 1999. For example, the token might carry a USBinterface which, when plugged into a mobile, generates and installs keysin the two devices. The USB interface can also support installation ofany needed software on the mobile, including any application-level,special-purpose software that may be required. Moreover, use of a USBinterface allows two-way communication, thereby allowing the token toreceive network-configuration data while also allowing a broader rangeof pairing protocols without altering the essential one-way nature ofthe wireless authentication protocol.

Though powerful and flexible, a USB interface increases device cost andcan pose usability problems. Many computers are physically situated sothat their USB ports are not easily accessible, and others may have noUSB ports to spare. Also, users may need to be trained that a wirelesstoken needs to be inserted into the computer once for initialization,but not thereafter.

A number of additional examples of pairing protocols in accordance withembodiments of the present invention will now be described. Each ofthese exemplary protocols may be implemented using a wirelessauthentication token having an output-only network layer, although itwill be apparent that such a configuration is not required forimplementing the protocols.

Protocol with Trusted Key-Establishment Server and User-Directed AccessControl

In this protocol, the user directly authorizes a mobile to pair with thetoken. Network-configuration data for device x is represented by the MACaddress MAC_(x), though other identifying data could be used. Before theprotocol, the token already possesses the secret seed needed to generateK_(t,m) ^(i) by means of a key derivation function.

1. The user renders the mobile discoverable.

2. The user begins the pairing program on the mobile.

3. The user clicks three times (or otherwise signals intention) on thetoken, indicating that the token should pair.

4. The token transmits MAC_(t), along with a flag that indicates thatthis is a pairing message. Now the mobile knows the token's MAC address.

5. The user enters a tokencode (e.g., from the token LCD screen) to thepairing program on the mobile. This tokencode is only for pairing: itcannot serve as an ordinary tokencode, nor can an ordinary tokencodeserve as a pairing tokencode.

6. The mobile sends the tokencode and token identity to a server, whichverifies that the code and identity match for the current time period i.K_(t,m) ^(i) is given to the mobile.

7. If the token is promiscuous, the procedure is complete.

8. Otherwise, the mobile sends (MAC_(m), HMAC_(K) _(t,m) _(i) (MAC_(m)))to the token. Although there is no immediate security need for thisstep, it is good practice to ensure that the list of qualified mobilesis authentic. Intuitively, the mobile sends its MAC address to the tokenalong with some authenticator that assures the token that the mobile isauthorized by the server to pair with it.

9. The token verifies the authentication code and stores the MACaddress, then displays “OK” on its display.

Protocol with Trusted Key-Establishment Server and Server-DirectedAccess Control

In this protocol, the server determines whether a given mobile isauthorized to pair with the token.

1. The user renders the mobile discoverable.

2. The user begins the pairing program on the mobile.

3. The user clicks three times (or otherwise signals intention) on thetoken, indicating that the token should pair.

4. The token broadcasts MAC_(t), along with a flag that indicates thatthis is a pairing message. Now the mobile knows the token's MAC address.

5. The mobile sends MAC_(t) to the server and requests a pairing key.

6. If the server authorizes the mobile to pair with the token, itreturns K_(t,m) ^(i) to the mobile.

7. If the token is promiscuous, the procedure is complete.

8. Otherwise, the mobile sends (MAC_(m), HMAC_(K) _(t,m) _(i) (MAC_(m)))to the token.

9. The token and mobile each display a confirmation code, e.g., the lastfour digits of H(K_(t,m) ^(i)). The user may perform a visualcomparison. This helps protect against active attack as well as user ormachine error.

It is to be appreciated that the above pairing protocols are presentedby way of example only, and other embodiments can use alternativeoperations. Authentication and encryption protocol examples will bedescribed in greater detail below.

Authentication Architectures

A given wireless authentication token 102 may be, for example,event-based or time-based. Such a token can record time as a functioneither of the number of outputs it has emitted or of an internal,continuously running clock. The advantage of event-based timekeeping isthat it may be implemented using only a counter; the token need notmaintain a continuously-running clock. Event-based emissions, however,are vulnerable to replay. If an adversary intercepts a token output thatthe mobile fails to receive, the adversary can successfully replay theintercepted output until the token makes its next successfulauthentication to the mobile. In contrast, the outputs of conventionaltime-based tokens typically expire within a short window of time, e.g.,one minute. A wireless authentication token could be configured to havetokencode expirations of a few seconds, limiting the opportunity of theadversary.

As a more particular example, the wireless authentication token 102 maybe configured as a wireless variant of an otherwise conventionalSecurID® authentication token. In a typical conventional SecurID®system, a token shares a unique secret key x_(A) with an authenticationserver. At time T, the token computes a tokencode c_(T)=ƒ(x_(A), T),where ƒ is a one-way function based on 128-bit Advanced EncryptionStandard (AES). This tokencode c_(T) is typically displayed on the tokenas a six-digit code that the user types into the keyboard of a personalcomputer for transmission to the authentication server. The user alsotypes a supplementary, user-specific PIN, typically four digits inlength. By default, the time T has one-minute granularity, although thesystem compensates for clock-skew and typing delays by allowing theserver to accept tokencodes corresponding to slightly inaccurate times.

In a wireless variant of the above-described SecurID® token, protectionagainst tokencode interception is provided by encrypting token emissionsunder a symmetric encryption key x_(E) shared between the token and themobile. That is, the token emits e_(x) _(E) [c_(T)] at time T, where eis a suitable cipher. Of course, a token emission is subject to replay;expiration of tokencodes already aims to prevent such attacks. Softwareon the mobile permits receipt and decryption of the tokencode c_(T) andcan automatically pass it to appropriate applications.

This simple wireless system offers a number of advantages over ordinarySecurID® tokens. There is, of course, the heightened user convenienceoffered by the elimination of tokencode entry. Additionally, however, itis possible to transmit longer tokencodes, achieving strongerauthentication without encumbering the user.

The various pairing protocols described herein can support a widevariety of token configurations, including both event-based andtime-based tokens, as well as tokens with user activation and those withcontinuous emission.

It is possible for a symmetric-key token to authenticate itself to aserver through the agency of the mobile using public-key techniques. Inparticular, in conjunction with a mobile device, a symmetric-key tokencan support authentication to any of a collection of servers that do nothave a trusted relationship.

An exemplary model of a public-key-based system in which both the tokenand the mobile serve as authentication factors will now be described.Such systems are referred to herein as joint-authentication systems.

An authentication system in this model comprises a set of functionsAS={KeyGen, Mobile, Server, Token} defined as follows:

KeyGen (l, d)→K_(t) ⁽⁰⁾,K_(m) ⁽⁰⁾,K_(s) ⁽⁰: The key-generation functiontakes as input a key-length parameter l and a security parameter d thatdefines time-granularity in the system. KeyGen outputs initializationkeys for the token, mobile, and server respectively.

Token (K_(t) ^((j),T)→(K_(t) ^((j+1)),k^((j+1))): The token takes asinput a current token key K_(t) ^((j)) and the current time T, andoutputs a new key, K_(t) ^((j+1)), along with a new tokencode k^((j+1)).In an event-based token, T may be a simple counter, omitted, or ignored.

Mobile (M, T, K_(m) ^((i)), k)→(C; {tilde over (K)}_(m) ^((i+1))): Themobile function takes as input a message M; this might be a message towhich the mobile applies a digital signature or a random challengeissued by a server. It also takes as input the current time T, thecurrent mobile key K_(m) ^((i)) and a tokencode k. Mobile outputs aresponse C and a new mobile key K_(m) ^((i+1)). In case of invalidinput, the function outputs a special value φ.

Server (C, K_(s) ^((r)), k)→(v={0, 1}, K_(s) ^((r+1))): The serverfunction takes as input a value C, as well as a current server key{tilde over (K)}_(x) ^((r)). It yields a bit value v, where ‘1’signifies “accept” and ‘0’ signifies “reject.” It also outputs a newserver key K_(x) ^(r+1)).

In the normal course of operation, the token outputs a tokencode k. Themobile takes this tokencode as input, along with supplementary inputs Mand T, and outputs a value C, representing the combined authenticationinformation of the token and mobile. The server verifies the correctnessof C.

As a simple example, consider a system in which a time-based token holdsa private key SK whose corresponding public key is PK. The token outputsa digital signature C_(t)=(Σ_(SK) [T], T) of the current time T. Themobile has an analogous key pair (SK′PK′); on receiving c_(T), itoutputs a digital signature C=(Σ_(SK′)[c_(T)], c_(T)). The server holdsPK and PK′. It accepts mobile output C=(Σ_(SK′)[c_(T)], c_(T)) only if Tis current and both digital signatures are valid.

A Simple Encryption-Based Approach

An elementary joint-authentication protocol assigns a digital signingkey SK to the mobile, with the server storing the corresponding publickey PK. The mobile stores SK in encrypted form. When it receives atokencode k^((j)), it decrypts SK for authentication to the server. Themobile can digitally sign the current time or a server-issued challenge.The mobile immediately then encrypts SK in such a way that it can bedecrypted using future tokencodes from the token. Encryption-basedprotocols will be described in greater detail below. Theencryption-based approach is typically most useful for event-basedtokens.

Although a naïve encryption-based approach can achievejoint-authentication security in some sense, it lacks forward securityeven when the underlying encryption scheme itself is forward-secure. Forexample, if an adversary compromises SK, then it can impersonate themobile in all future timesteps.

One way of achieving forward security is simply to have the mobilerefresh its signing keys. In particular, the mobile is initialized withprivate key SK⁽⁰⁾ and the server with public key PK⁽⁰⁾. On its i^(th)authentication to the server, the mobile generates a new key pair(SK^((i+1)), PK^((i+1))), and transmits a digital signature Σ_(SK)_((i)) (PK^((i+1))) on its new public key to the server. In this way,transient compromise of the mobile signing key is subject to detection.The key records of the mobile and adversary will diverge: If one entityregisters a new public key, the other entity will be rendered unable toproduce a fresh authentication. Thus a valid, stale authentication canalert a server to potential compromise of the mobile. Additional detailsregarding this type of key insulation approach can be found in G. Itkisand L. Reyzin, “Intrusion-resilient signatures, or towards obsoletion ofcertificate revocation,” in Advances in Cryptology—CRYPTO '02,Springer-Verlag, 2002.

Of course, compromise of the current key SK^((i)) still permits anadversary to impersonate the token and mobile at will until another,valid authentication attempt alerts the server to the compromise. Thenext proposed approach addresses this weakness.

A Hash Chain Approach

In this approach, we define an epoch as a sequence of d token values,where an epoch can be either time-based or event-based. With each epochis associated a hash chain, whose images the token releases one by one.The mobile possesses a certificate for each epoch. To achieve jointauthentication, the mobile employs the private key of its certificate inconjunction with hash images realized by the token.

Let c_(i) denote a hash chain of length d associated with epoch i. Letc_(i) ^((j)) denote the j^(th) value in the chain such that c_(i) ⁽⁰⁾represents the head of the chain and c_(i) ^((d)), the tail. That is,for a suitable one-way hash function ƒ, we have c_(i) ^((j))=ƒ(c_(i)^((j+1))). Let (SK^((i)), PK^((i))) represent a key-pair for epoch i,with SK^((i)) stored by the mobile. A certificate Γ_(i) (issued by theappropriate authority) contains the public key PK^((i)) as well as thehead c_(i) ⁽⁰⁾ of the hash chain c_(i).

Key Generation:

A master private/public key pair (SK*, PK*) is generated. (This may bethe key pair of a participating authority.) For a system-lifetimeparameter W, keying material is generated for each epoch i in 1≦i≦W, inparticular: (1) A hash chain c_(i); (2) Private/public key pair(SK^((i)), PK^((i))); (3) A certificate C_(i)=(c_(i) ⁽⁰⁾, PK^((i)),Σ_(SK′)[c₁ ⁽⁰⁾, PK^((i))]). A token/mobile secret key x_(A) is alsogenerated.

The token stores the tail of each hash chain (or, as an optimization, asingle master seed), as well as x_(A). The mobile stores the set of keys{SK^((i))}_(i=1) ^(W) and x_(A). The server stores {C_(i)}_(i=1) ^(W).

Token-Only Authentication:

In timestep j of epoch i, the token emits value c_(i) ^((j)). The servercan verify the correctness of this pre-image by hashing c_(i) ^((j)) jtimes to obtain c_(i) ⁽⁰⁾ and then checking this value against thecertificate C_(i).

Token-Mobile Joint Authentication:

On receiving c_(i) ^((j)) from the token on a channel encrypted underx_(A), the mobile signs it using SK^((i)), i.e., outputs (c_(i) ^((j)),Σ_(SK) _((i)) C_(i) ^((j))), where Σ in this context denotes signing. Ifthe token is to be used alternatively in a freestanding mode, then it isimportant to protect c_(i) ^((j)) against compromise. In this case, themobile may communicate its output to the server on an encrypted channel.

Resource Requirements:

To amortize computational costs, the token may compute values in thehash chain for epoch i+1 as it releases those for epoch i. In this case,the token performs one hash computation per time step, and its storagerequirement is that for d hash images. The certificates and keys forthis system require considerably more storage on the mobile device.

As an example, consider a time-based token with a fine time-intervalgranularity, namely one second. Suppose that an epoch consists of 100hash values, and that a hash image is 160 bits (20 bytes) in length. Inthis case, the token requires 2 k bytes of storage. To support a tokenthat lasts for five years, a mobile would need 1,576,800 certificates.Assuming use of short, elliptic-curve-based signatures, each certificateand associated key would occupy 40 bytes. The mobile could derive thehead of a hash chain from any of its pre-images. Thus, the total memoryrequirement would be just over 63 MB on the mobile.

It should be noted that Merkle trees can serve as an alternative to hashchains in this approach. Also, the fractal technique disclosed in M.Jakobsson, “Fractal hash sequence representation and traversal,” inProceedings of the 2002 IEEE International Symposium on InformationTheory (ISIT '02), pages 437-444, 2002, can serve as an optimization forordinary hash chains, although it is unlikely to yield substantialbenefits for smaller chains.

In a temporarily fine-grained system, the token could display just thehead of the hash chain, i.e., the backup authentication method wouldresolve only to the granularity of an epoch.

An Elliptic-Curve Approach

If the token has the resources to do lightweight public-key operations,such as elliptic curve multiplication, an alternative approach ispossible. In this approach, the token derives a base point G^((T)) fromthe current time T. It multiplies this base by its private key SK_(t),effectively generating a signature on T. Using a pairing operator, forexample, as described in D. Boneh and M. Franklin, “Identity-basedencryption from the Weil pairing,” Lecture Notes in Computer Science:Advances in Cryptology—CRYPTO 2001, 2139, 2001, the correctness of thissignature may be checked against a public key for the token. Byextension, the token and mobile together may compute a Diffie-Hellmankey on the base G^((T)); pairings again permit an implicit check ofcorrectness.

Let capital letters denote points on a suitable elliptic curve E withorder q, and lower case letters denote integers in field F_(q). LetG^((T)) be a publicly computable point derived from application of asuitable one-way function to T, the current time at a standardized levelof granularity. Alternatively, G^((T)) can be computed based on amessage to be signed. Let H be a publicly, pre-established, randomlyselected point on E. Let ê be the pairing operator as defined inBoneh-Franklin over E×E.

Key Generation:

The token is programmed with random secret SK_(t)εF_(q). Itscorresponding public key is PK_(t)=SK_(t)H. The mobile device isprogrammed with SK_(m). It shares a joint public keyPK_(t,m)=SK_(t)SK_(m)H with the token. The server may store one or bothpublic keys.

Token-Only Authentication:

At time T, the token emits K_(t) ^((T))=SK_(t)G^((T)). The correctnessof K_(t) ^((T)) may be checked via the equality ê(K_(t)^((T)),H)=ê(G^((T)),PK_(t)) (=ê(G^((T)), H)^(SK) ^(t) ).

Token-Mobile Joint Authentication:

The mobile computes K_(t,m) ^((T))=SK_(m)SK_(t)G^((T)) on receivingK_(t) ^((T)). This serves as a proof that the mobile learned the tokenvalue K_(t) ^((T)). The correctness of K_(t,m)^((T))=SK_(m)SK_(t)G^((T)) may be verified via the equality ê(K_(t,m)^((T)),H)=ê(G^((T)),PK_(t,m)) (=ê(G^((T)),H)^(SK) ^(m) ^(SK) ^(t) ).

Resource Requirements:

The main computational burden for the token and mobile is a singleelliptic-curve multiplication. Pairing computation is computationallyintensive (equivalent roughly to an RSA decryption), but need beperformed only by the verifier. Note that computation is only requiredat the time of authentication; there is no need for persistent stateupdates.

One very attractive feature of this protocol is the way it masks theidentity of the token. In particular, multiple tokens can be coupledwith the mobile in such a way that any will enable the mobile tocomplete its authentication successfully without revealing which tokenit interacted with. The mobile need merely store ratios of tokensecrets.

Note that a mobile device may be provisioned with the joint public keyPK_(t,m) using knowledge of SK_(m) and PK_(t) alone. No modification tothe token is required for joint authentication with a mobile device.Moreover, multiple mobile devices may be provisioned simultaneously withjoint-authentication certificates for the same token.

Assuming a shared initial secret key y₀ between the token and mobile, itis possible to create a funkspiel channel. See J. Håstad et al.,“Funkspielschemes: An alternative to conventional tamper resistance,” inSeventh ACM Conference on Computer and Communications Security, pages125-133, 2000. Let y_(i+1)=ƒ(y_(i)) for a suitable one-way function ƒ.At time t, the token emits E_(yr)[k^((t))], and replaces y_(T) withy_(T+1), where E is a suitable encryption function. If tampered with,the token replaces y_(T+1) with y_(T+2), for example; this induces adesynchronization that is easily checked by the mobile device.

The mobile can compute the joint public key on the fly (if it's notcached). It can do so given a token's public key. The joint key ischeckable by anyone, using, for example, Decision Diffie-Hellman (DDH)verification.

Encryption Architectures

A wireless authentication token may be configured to facilitateencryption capabilities on the mobile device. The mobile might encryptsensitive files automatically after a certain idle period, for example,when a screensaver appears. Alternatively, the user might explicitlyactivate a lockdown functionality using a special button on the token ora key sequence on the mobile.

For the greatest convenience, the user should be able to decrypt fileson the mobile device by clicking the same button on the token as sheuses to authenticate herself. Ideally, the user should merely perceivethe token as “locking” and “unlocking” sensitive resources. The systemcan abstract away the notions of authentication and encryption.

In a simple architecture, the token could output the sameencryption/decryption key on every button-press. As the token-mobilechannel is encrypted, this key would not be vulnerable to directeavesdropping. To prevent replay attacks, the key could be accompaniedby a timestamp or counter. Before decrypting, the mobile would verifythe freshness of the timestamp or counter. The problem with thisapproach is its lack of time-insulation. An attacker that intercepts asingle token emission at any time and gains access to the laptop at anytime can successfully decrypt the contents of the laptop. To restrictthis broad adversarial power, the encryption/decryption key emitted bythe token may change over time, for example, in every time step.

Changing keys may present desynchronization issues in an output-onlytoken. Suppose, for instance, that the token emits a newencryption/decryption key in every time step, and that the mobile deviceencrypts its contents under the next key to be emitted by the token. Ifthe user presses the button on her token while she is out of range ofthe mobile device, the token and mobile will become desynchronized. Inother words, the token cannot decrypt the contents of the mobile becausethe encryption keys employed by the mobile are now stale in the view ofthe token.

To alleviate the problem of desynchronization, the mobile device mayperform encryption under a sequence or window of d future token keys.For example, the mobile device might encrypt under the next d=10 keys tobe emitted by the token. Only if the user then activates the token tentimes out of range of the mobile, then, will desynchronization occur.This approach of windowing, of course, means that an adversary that hasgained access to the mobile device can in general successfully decryptits contents by intercepting any of the next ten token outputs.Windowing imposes a fundamental tradeoff: Larger values of d diminishthe risk of desynchronization, but increase exposure to an adversary.

Simple Encryption

A simple approach to encryption is for the mobile to store the initialtoken key K_(t) ⁽⁰⁾, as well as a private/public key pair (SK, PK) whichmay be either persistent or ephemeral. For simplicity, we assume herethat any tokencode k^((j)) for token time j may be efficiently computedfrom K_(t) ⁽⁰⁾. The operations of encryption and decryption are then asfollows:

Encryption:

The mobile receives a counter value from the token or otherwisedetermines the current token counter (e.g., time) value j; the mobilemay additionally take as input a plaintext value M. It then does thefollowing:

1. The mobile encrypts the pair (SK, K_(t) ⁽⁰⁾) under future tokencodesk^((j+1)), k^((j+2)), . . . , k^((j+d)) using K_(t) ⁽⁰⁾⁾, i.e., itcreates d independent key-encapsulating ciphertexts C_(j+1), C_(j+2), .. . , C_(j+d).

2. The mobile erases any plain text instantiation of SK, but retains PKin plaintext form.

3. The mobile creates a ciphertext C by encrypting M under PK. As weexplain below, C is subject to updates between encryption operations onSK.

Decryption:

Taking the current tokencode k^((j)) as input, the mobile attempts todecrypt each of its currently stored key-encapsulating ciphertexts. Ifsuccessful on one of them, it recovers (SK, K_(t) ⁽⁰⁾) and also decryptsC.

In a typical operational environment, we expect that management of theciphertext C would be partially independent of the mobile's ordinaryencryption operation as outlined above. In particular, we expect thatthe mobile, after receiving a tokencode k^((j)), and decrypting SK andM, would then immediately perform its encryption operation for countervalue j. In other words, after decrypting M, the mobile wouldimmediately re-encrypt the keys SK and K_(t) ⁽⁰⁾ so as to minimize theirexposure.

PK can serve subsequently to encrypt M, potentially after updating it,whenever desired. For example, if the user “locks” the mobile, either byactivating her token, entering a keystroke sequence, or leaving hermobile unused for a period of time, the mobile can encrypt M under PK. Mmay be a collection of files or passwords, or even portions or the wholeof a hard disk.

Forward Security

The simple approach we have just described does not achieve forwardsecurity. Once an adversary observes the mobile in its decrypted stateand therefore compromises the token seed K_(t) ⁽⁰⁾ (or an updatedversion thereof), the adversary can successfully simulate the token andattack the mobile at any future time.

To achieve forward security, a more sophisticated approach to encryptionmay be used, as outlined in the following example.

EXAMPLE 1

To meet tight bandwidth constraints, a token might perform windowing byemitting two keys, k and {circumflex over (k)}. The token refreshes thefirst key at time steps d, 3d, 5d, . . . and the second key at timesteps 2d, 4d, 6d, . . . . In other words, we employ two, graduallyrotating keys with overlapping intervals. This compact scheme creates asynchronization window of size at least d, and provides a good degree oftime insulation, as keys change on a regular basis. It fails, however,to achieve strong encryption. An adversary can potentially intercept atoken output first and then compromise the mobile.

Formally, an encryption system in this model comprises a set offunctions ES={KeyGen, Enc, Dec, Token}, defined as follows:

KeyGen(l)→(K_(t) ⁽⁰⁾, K_(m) ⁽⁰⁾): The key-generation function takes asinput a security parameter l. It outputs initialization keys for thetoken and mobile devices respectively.

Enc(M, K_(m) ^((i)), k)→(C; {tilde over (K)}_(m) ^((i+1))): Theencryption function takes as input a plaintext M, a current mobile keyK_(m) ^((i)) and a supplementary token output k. It yields a ciphertextC and a “locked” mobile key. If encryption fails, the function outputs aspecial value φ.

Dec(C, {tilde over (K)}_(m) ^((i)), k)→(M; {tilde over (K)}_(m) ^((i))):The decryption function takes as input a ciphertext C, as well as acurrent “locked” mobile key {tilde over (K)}_(m) ^((i)). It yields aplaintext M as well as a new mobile key K_(m) ^((i)). If decryptionfails, the function outputs a special value φ.

Token(K_(t) ^((j)))→(K_(t) ^((j+1)), k^((j+1))): The token takes asinput a current token key K_(t) ^((j)) and outputs a new one, K_(t)^((j)), along with a new tokencode k^((j+1)).

We will now describe two exemplary encryption protocols. The firstrequires only symmetric-key primitives. The second is similar to thepreviously-described public-key-based authentication, and relies onpairings over elliptic-curve groups.

Symmetric-Key Variant

The symmetric key variant is similar in spirit to the simple scheme inExample 1 above. To strengthen the scheme, however, we do not use keysthat remain static over intervals of 2 d time steps. Instead, we usehash chains of length 2 d; successive hash chains overlap in d timesteps. Let h represent a suitable one-way function (e.g., a hashfunction), and h^((i)) represent i successive applications of h. Thescheme is as follows. As the KeyGen function is straightforward in viewof the previous description, it will not be described in detail here.

Token: At time step 2zd for positive integers z, the token generates afresh, random l-bit key k. The token computes{k^((j))=h^((z+2)d−j−1))(k)}_(j=xd) ^((z+2)d−1), i.e., a hash chain oflength 2 d. At timestep (2z−1)d for positive integers z, the tokenanalogously computes values {circumflex over (k)}^((j)), {{circumflexover (k)}^((j))=h^((z+2)d−j−1))({circumflex over (k)})}_(j=zd)^((z+2)d−1). At timestep j, the token outputs the pair(k^((j)),{circumflex over (k)}^((j))).

Enc: On receiving the current token output (k^((j)),{circumflex over(k)}^((j))), the mobile generates a fresh private/public key pair(SK^((j)), PK^((j))). It computes the pair E=(e_(k(j))[SK^((j))],e_({circumflex over (k)}(j)), [SK^((j))]) and stores (E, PK). The mobilethen erases all other secrets. Any sensitive files may now be encryptedunder PK.

Dec: On receiving the current token output (k^((j)), {circumflex over(k)}^((j))), the mobile attempts to decrypt E using keys in{h^((i))(k^((j)), h^((i))({circumflex over (k)}^((j)))}_(i=0) ^(2d−1).The mobile may try keys in increasing order of i; alternatively, if thetoken outputs j, the mobile can directly determine how to derive thenecessary keys.

This scheme supports a synchronization window of size at least d in anytime step.

A number of optimizations may be achieved, as follows. Given storage 4d, the token computations may be amortized to achieve an average load oftwo hash functions per timestep. Let c^((m)), c^((m+1)), . . . ,c^((m+2d−1)) denote the element of a given chain of length 2 d releasedacross timesteps m to m+2 d−1. In timestep m−z, for 1≦z≦2 d, the tokencomputes and stores c^((m+z−1)). That is, the token computes and storesthe fill chain one timestep at a time, starting at the tail. Whenever anelement in a hash chain is output, the token releases the associatedmemory slot.

We can achieve a further reduction in storage to 2 d+1 with no increasein computation through a small adjustment to the structure of a chain.In particular, we let the first d elements each be independently derivedfrom the (d+1)st element of the chain. For example, we letc^((m))=h(c^((d+1))∥1), c^((m+1))=h(c^((d+1))∥2), . . .c^((m+d))=h(c^((d+1))∥d). We refer to this as a “frayed” hash chain.Observe that the “frayed” part of a chain, i.e., the first d elements,can be derived from any of the “unfrayed” elements, i.e., the last delements. Briefly, then, successful encryption and decryption hinges onthe following invariant: In any timestep, the token outputs an elementfrom the “unfrayed” part of one of the two currently active, overlappinghash chains. Using frayed hash chains, we can cut our storageeffectively in half. Rather than storing elements in the frayed part ofa chain, the token can compute them on the fly. Thus the token requiresstorage 2 d for unfrayed elements, and an additional slot for itson-the-fly computation.

Of course there are many possible variants involving more than twooverlapping hash chains and different resource tradeoffs. With noconstraints on computation and bandwidth, for example, each key k^((j))can be independent, and in time step t, the token can simply output{k^((j))}_(j=t) ^(j+d).

Public-Key Variant

We will now describe a public-key encryption scheme that relies on aform of identity-based encryption (IBE). Very simply, we associate witheach timestep j (rather than each entity) a unique “identity” known toboth the mobile and the token. This identity can simply be the integervalue j. The system thereby associates a public-private key pair(PK^((j)), SK^((j))) with each timestep j.

In this arrangement, the mobile can compute PK^((j)) for any desiredtimestep, including future ones, without knowledge of any private keys.It suffices for the mobile to combine system parameters with the“identity” j. The mobile therefore can independently encrypt files underfuture key pairs, e.g., under a window of d successive, future keys. Thetoken, then, plays the role of the Private Key Generator (PKG), andmanages the system secrets. In each timestep j, the token releases theprivate key SK^((j)).

Document Signing

Whereas traditional SecurID® authentication focuses on general userauthentication for computer login, some applications require explicitauthentication of particular data in a process typically called documentsigning. In order to authenticate the origin of this data, one canrequire that the wireless token be present.

We will describe below several approaches to the problem oftoken-assisted document signing. The variables under considerationprincipally focus on a few factors, namely, how to include evidence of atoken's proximity into a digital signature, what effect this has onexisting digital signature infrastructure, and what communications takeplace between the mobile and the token.

One-Way Transmission, Standard Signatures.

As described above, a wireless authentication token in an illustrativeembodiment emits periodic time-varying authentication information.Perhaps the easiest way to include evidence of token presence in asignature is simply to append the most recently received authenticationinformation from the token to the data to be signed. The existingdigital signature infrastructure could be used to verify this ordinarydigital signature. But additional software support may be required toverify the appended authentication information.

One-Way Transmission, Custom Signatures.

In order to save battery life, we may want to reduce the duty cycle ofthe token as much as possible. As indicated previously herein, one wayto do this is to make it an output-only device. The standard equationsfor digital signatures are then revised to include authenticationinformation sent by the token. The resulting signature could not havebeen produced by either the token or mobile alone. This property addssome additional security: simply stealing one's token or one's mobile isnot enough for an attacker to produce fraudulent signatures. Thedifficulty with this approach is that the resulting signature does notfollow established standards and may therefore require a custominfrastructure for verification.

Two-Way Transmission, Standard Signatures.

Another approach is to transmit a document or the hash of a document tothe token to be signed. To conserve battery life, the token may brieflyswitch its receiver on after transmitting authentication information foran indication from the mobile that there is data to be signed. Forexample, a reactive token may listen for probe requests to discoverwhich mobiles should receive tokencodes. Though custom software driversmight be required, in principle one could append arbitrary informationelements to the probe request to carry the data to be signed.

The token may alternatively switch its receiver on only when the tokenholder presses a button for this purpose. The token then becomes anordinary station in the wireless network. Although doing so presents anadditional administrative burden, users in specialized environmentsmight find this service valuable. It attempts to associate with theaccess point most likely used by the mobile by measuring signalstrength. This particular method works not only for signatures but forgeneral bidirectional communication. For this reason, a variety ofsecurity protocols could be implemented. Because of the stack ofnetworking protocols involved, this button press may initiate thefollowing sequence of actions:

1. Activate 802.11 radio.

2. Scan for access points, either passively or actively.

3. Determine signal strength of discovered access points.

4. Associate to the access point of highest strength, or the accesspoint named in a previous provisioning step, described below.

5. Obtain an IP address using a protocol such as DHCP or bootp.

6. Send this IP address along with a port number to the mobile using abeacon or probe response frame, as described above. Instead of simplysending the tokencode as described above, the token sends its IP addressand a port number either along with or instead of the tokencode.

7. Listen for data from the mobile for a predetermined interval of time.

8. Process incoming data, if any.

9. Disassociate from the access point either explicitly, or simply byturning the radio off.

The mobile receives a message from the token including its IP address.The mobile can then open an ordinary TCP or UDP connection to the token,sending either the data to be signed, its hash, or the datagrams of someother security protocol. To sign data, the token can either immediatelyperform the signature and return the result, or require some user actionto signal explicit consent. The token can optionally display the data,part of the data, the hash, or part of the hash. The user can optionallyassent to the signature by pressing a button or providing a biometricsample. This action causes the token to perform its signature, orgenerate a datagram of some other security protocol. Any data signedcould be retained on the token for later display or audit.

Two-Way Transmission, Out-of-Band Verification, and Custom Signatures.

Digital signature systems have historically been beset by a fundamentalproblem: the lack of direct agency on the part of a user. The user isrelying on computing hardware to not only correctly calculate asignature while not revealing the private key, but also to sign thecorrect data. Given the many layers of software running on a moderncomputer, it is not hard to imagine a scenario where a particulardocument is displayed on screen for approval before signature, but amodified document is actually signed. To counter this avenue of attack,the token can gain some out-of-band capability.

For example, the token can share the perception of the user with regardto the data to be signed, or “see what the user sees.” Moreparticularly, the token could include a digital camera that captures animage to be additionally signed. Or as an alternative, we know thatdisplay technologies are increasingly becoming wireless themselves. Thetoken could monitor wireless communications between a mobile and itsassociated display so that once again it is able to share the perceptionof the user.

As another example, the token could include some geolocation capabilitysuch as GPS. The token's location could provide some corroboratingevidence in the event of subsequent dispute.

The illustrative embodiments described above provide a wirelessauthentication token that operates using existing 802.11 capabilities ofcomputers and other processing devices. More particularly, theseembodiments provide a new communication protocol that tunnelsauthentication information through 802.11 management frames. In additionto providing protocols for authentication, the illustrative embodimentsprovide protocols for encryption of authentication informationtransmitted by the token, and protocols for support of encryption on acomputer.

It should again be emphasized that the particular wirelessauthentication techniques described above are provided by way ofillustration, and should not be construed as limiting the presentinvention to any specific embodiment or group of embodiments. Forexample, as previously noted, the described embodiments may be adaptedin a straightforward manner to operate with protocols other than 802.11,utilizing other field and frame formats to communicate authenticationinformation or other types of information. Also, the particularconfiguration of system elements shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, and theirinteractions as shown in FIG. 3, may be varied in other embodiments.Moreover, the various simplifying assumptions made above in the courseof describing the illustrative embodiments should also be viewed asexemplary rather than as requirements or limitations of the invention.These and numerous other alternative embodiments within the scope of theappended claims will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art.

APPENDIX

As indicated above, further details regarding the illustrativeembodiment of FIG. 3, as well as other related alternatives andvariants, will be provided in this Appendix. These particularembodiments deal with implementation using the 802.11 standard, and thetable structures and contents shown are generally as specified in thatstandard. The wireless authentication token and computer referred to inthis Appendix may be viewed as respective elements 102 and 104 of thesystem 100 shown in FIG. 1. It is to be appreciated that the detailspresented herein are by way of illustrative example only, and should notbe construed as limiting the scope of the invention in any way.

An 802.11 access point divides time into periods called superframes. Ineach superframe, several ordinary directed data frames may be sent. Theprotocol does include a mechanism for a station to periodically sleep,but it typically requires all stations to run their transceivers for afixed duration of time in each superframe.

An 802.11 access point advertises its existence by sending frames to abroadcast address. The illustrative embodiment of FIG. 3 provides awireless authentication token that mimics an 802.11 access point inorder to deliver authentication information to a computer. Instead ofremaining continuously connected, the token mostly sleeps in a low-powerstate with its radio turned off. At certain intervals, e.g., everysecond or two, it wakes up, turns its radio on, and sends a frame to thebroadcast address. Any network interface cards within the token's radiosphere of influence will receive the broadcast frame. A number ofexemplary frame formats suitable for implementing the proposed methodare described below. The particular frame format used in a givenimplementation may depend upon factors such as the way chipset vendorshave implemented their network drivers. Such factors can influence whichof the following frame formats is the most effective in deliveringauthentication information and the least disruptive to the computer'sordinary use of wireless networking.

Structured protocols like 802.11 organize data to be transmitted intoprotocol data units called frames. These are further divided intomanagement frames and data frames.

By setting these fields appropriately, stations can communicate with oneanother. We will outline two different approaches: one based on anordinary data frame, and two based on the beacon frame. Since someimplementations may not accept data blindly sent to the broadcastaddress, we will demonstrate two methods to construct a valid beaconframe that will be ignored by a station's management entity as definedin 802.11, but still act as a vehicle for authentication information.

Broadcast Data Frame

A broadcast data frame follows the general frame format, given in TABLE1.

TABLE 1 Frame Duration/ Sequence Frame Control ID Addr. 1 Addr. 2 Addr.3 Control Addr. 4 Body FCS Bytes 2 2 6 6 6 2 6 <=2312 4

-   1. Frame Control—2 octets. In order to create a valid data frame    that ordinary stations will accept, we set certain flags in this    field as depicted in TABLE 2. Setting these flags indicates this is    a data frame bound for its ultimate destination, not to be echoed by    any nearby access points and indicates how the remainder of the    frame is to be processed.

TABLE 2 Bits 0-1 2-3 4-7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Name Protocol TypeSubtype To From More Retry Pwr More WEP Order Version DS DS Frag MgtData Value 00 10 0000 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0

-   2. Duration/ID—2 octets. Since this frame is to be directed to the    broadcast address, the duration value is set to zero.-   3. Address 1—6 octets. This field holds the destination address. In    the present embodiment this is the broadcast address denoted by    setting each bit of this field equal to one.-   4. Address 2—6 octets. This field holds the BSSID (Basic Service Set    Identifier), which is ordinarily the address of the access point    controlling the network. Since the wireless token in this    illustrative embodiment does not participate in the association    process, it will not know the proper BSSID to use, so we simply set    it equal to the broadcast address. The BSSID mismatch introduces the    strong possibility that the frame will be rejected by the network    card or driver in the computer 104.-   5. Address 3—6 octets. This field holds the source address. Since    the wireless token in this illustrative embodiment accepts no    replies, this field is a don't care, so we will set each bit equal    to zero.-   6. Sequence control—2 octets. Each frame sent by a station is    assigned a sequence number, primarily to control retransmission.    Since the wireless token in this illustrative embodiment will not    support retransmission, we will simply set this field equal to zero.-   7. Address 4—in frames of this type, this field is omitted.-   8. Frame body—up to 2,312 octets. This field contains the    authentication information for the present time interval.-   9. FCS—4 octets. This field provides a CRC over the frame.

General Beacon Frame

As mentioned above, the fact that the wireless token in thisillustrative embodiment may not know the correct BSSID may result in theframe being rejected by the network card or driver. Our researchindicates that around 75% of the 802.11 chipsets in the field willbehave this way. This problem is mitigated by using the frame sent by anaccess point to advertise its existence, namely, the beacon. The beaconis a management frame which follows the format shown in TABLE 3 andadditionally specifies certain content to be carried in the frame bodyshown in TABLE 4.

TABLE 3 Frame Dura- Sequence Frame Control tion DA SA BSSID Control BodyFCS Bytes 2 2 6 6 6 2 <=2312 4

TABLE 4 Order Information 1 Timestamp 2 Beacon interval 3 Capabilityinformation 4 SSID 5 Supported rates 6 FH Parameter Set 7 DS ParameterSet 8 CF Parameter Set 9 IBSS Parameter Set 10 Traffic Indication MapSince we want this frame to be received by every nearby station, we setthe DA (Destination Address) field and the BSSID to be the broadcastaddress. The value of SA is unimportant, or called a “don't care,” asthe wireless token in this illustrative embodiment does not acceptframes.

Now we set the fields in the frame body in such a way that we constructa valid beacon frame that allows us to communicate authenticationinformation, but appear to be such an unattractive access point that noordinary stations would try to associate.

We further define two different beacon frames: one designed for maximumcompatibility and one designed for maximum throughput.

Beacon for Maximum Compatibility

This beacon frame uses no special fields. Instead, it uses the SSIDfield, typically used to carry the advertised name of the access point,to carry authentication information. The standard allows for an SSID ofup to 32 bytes. Microsoft Windows XP drivers report a list of the SSIDsof the access points detected. See Microsoft Corp. “Scanning 802.11Networks,” in Microsoft Developer Network Library. This fact means thatdriver support for promiscuous mode is not required, allowing forcompatibility with any 802.11 chipset under Windows. As a matter ofcourse, the Windows operating system causes this list of SSIDs to beperiodically refreshed. But additionally, the list can be explicitlyrefreshed by a calling application. Windows requires the driver torespond with a new list within six seconds. This fact means that with aneye toward maximum compatibility, we have in this illustrativeembodiment a communication channel capable of delivering 256 bits everysix seconds.

-   1. Timestamp—8 octets. These fields are a don't care, so we set them    to zero.-   2. Beacon interval—2 octets. Another don't care, so we set them to    zero.-   3. Capability information—2 octets. In order to create a valid    beacon frame that contains the fields that we need, we set certain    flags in this field as shown in TABLE 5A to indicate this beacon    comes from an access point.

TABLE 5A Bit 0 1 2 3 4 5-15 Name ESS IBSS CF CF Privacy ReservedPollable Poll Request Value 1 0 0 0 0 0

-   4. SSID—up to 32 octets. This field will carry the authentication    information, as described below. The authentication information    value may simply be a SecurID® tokencode, or perhaps a one-time    password or other value from another protocol.-   5. Supported Rates—up to 8 octets. To discourage stations from    trying to associate with the token, we set the length field to zero,    implying that the wireless token in this illustrative embodiment    supports no data rates at all.-   6. FH Parameter Set—5 octets set to zero.-   7. DS Parameter Set—1 octet set to zero.-   8. CF Parameter Set—6 octets set to zero.-   9. IBSS Parameter Set—not present in a beacon frame of this type-   10. Traffic Indication Map—up to 254 octets. In this beacon frame    format, we will leave this field empty.

Beacon for Maximum Throughput

The data field with the largest capacity listed above is the TrafficIndication Map. Since it is much larger than the SSID field, it may bedesirable to use it in a given embodiment. Unfortunately, the standardallows certain implementations to ignore this field, since it comesafter the SSID field during a transmission.

In particular, the standard states as follows: “STAs in aninfrastructure network shall only use other information in receivedBeacon frames, if the BSSID field is equal to the MAC address currentlyin use by the STA contained in the AP of the BSS.” The statement appearsto have two possible effects. On one hand, we do want the managemententity to ignore the rest of this beacon and not try and associate withthe token. On the other, an implementer could interpret the statement tomean that the rest of the beacon could be ignored and not reported tohigher layer software.

Even though the Microsoft Windows driver interface provides a mechanismfor a calling application to obtain the data contained in this field,the apparent ambiguity means that some chipsets may not report thecontents of this field. Chips that support promiscuous mode, forinstance, will most likely report the contents of this field, while thebehavior of other chipsets is unknown.

-   1. Timestamp—8 octets. These fields are a don't care, so we set them    to zero.-   2. Beacon interval—2 octets. Another don't care, so we set them to    zero.-   3. Capability information—2 octets. In order to create a valid    beacon frame that contains the fields that we need, we set certain    flags in this field as shown in TABLE 5B to indicate this beacon    comes from an access point.

TABLE 5B Bit 0 1 2 3 4 5-15 Name ESS IBSS CF CF Privacy ReservedPollable Poll Request Value 1 0 0 0 0 0

-   4. SSID—up to 32 octets. Once again, we can use this field for data    payload. In this instance, its use may be restricted to only those    cases when a token has more than 254 bytes to report at a time.-   5. Supported Rates—up to 8 octets. To discourage stations from    trying to associate with the token, we set the length field to zero,    implying that the token in this illustrative embodiment supports no    data rates at all.-   6. FH Parameter Set—5 octets set to zero.-   7. DS Parameter Set—1 octet set to zero.-   8. CF Parameter Set—6 octets set to zero.-   9. IBSS Parameter Set—not present in a beacon frame of this type-   10. Traffic Indication Map—up to 254 octets. This is the information    element we will use to carry the authentication information. It is    described in TABLE 6.

TABLE 6 Element DTIM DTIM Bitmap Partial Virtual Name ID Length CountPeriod control Bitmap Octets 1 1 1 1 1 1-251 Value 5 Varies 0 1 255Authentication information

Format for Authentication Information

Regardless of which of the above-described methods is used to transportthe authentication information, a format is needed by which theauthentication information consumer, such as a computer, may recognizeand interpret the information properly. The user may be situated in anenvironment with any number of other access points. In fact, networksecurity tools exist which cause a computer to emit a large number ofbogus beacon frames in an attempt to confuse a would-be attacker. Thewireless token should remain functional in this challenging environment.

At the same time, we need to remain mindful of privacy concerns. Forexample, a wireless token generally should not enable surreptitioustracking of users. The potential for this abuse of RFID technology hasresulted in considerable strife and the beginnings of legislationconcerning retail supply chain applications. For these reasons, thewireless token in this illustrative embodiment may be implemented so asto not broadcast a fixed identifier that corresponds with a tokenbolder's claimed identity. In particular, the wireless token could emitonly a non-predictable time-varying value. It is then up to the verifieror the computer in this case to determine which identity the tokenholder is claiming.

Recall that the authentication information in this embodiment compriseswhat are essentially random-looking bits. For a computer to supportmultiple users, it must be able to determine from which token itreceived authentication information. But taking the approach of sendinga fixed identifier would compromise privacy.

For this reason, we encrypt the authentication information under asymmetric key of the type described previously herein. The computer maymaintain a table of symmetric keys corresponding with those tokens itcan authenticate. In order to determine from which token authenticationinformation originated, the computer may simply perform trial decryptionusing each key in the table until a successful decryption occurs. Modernsymmetric ciphers like AES are extremely efficient on today'sprocessors. Especially given the trend toward multicore processors, manythousands or millions of trial AES decryptions can be performed everysecond.

So that the computer can detect a successful trial decryption, a fixedidentifier is prepended to the authentication information before it isencrypted. This fixed identifier could also include a version number toallow for future extensibility. For example, the phrase “RSABBR1.0” orsimply “RSA10” would ensure that with very high probability a successfultrial decryption indicates authentication information meant for theconsumer. Of course, a phrase like this serves only to provideredundancy, and an error detecting or correcting code could be usedinstead.

This approach introduces the possibility of a timing attack on thecomputer. For this reason, an implementation of the computer shouldeither reorder the table of possible tokens after every successfulinitial identification or simply perform the remaining trial decryptionseven after a token has been identified. After initial identification, atoken's decryption key may be kept in a cache to improve performance. Aswith the full table, care should be taken to avoid timing attacks onceagain by either reordering the cache or simply performing the remainingtrial decryptions.

In addition, a token that sends its beacon frames at a preciselypredetermined interval may lend itself to surreptitious identificationbased on this property alone. To avoid this sort of timing attack, thewireless token in this illustrative embodiment can produce its outputnot at a strictly predetermined interval, but rather at a randomlydetermined moment within a predetermined interval. In practice, thisapproach could be implemented by including a random or pseudorandomfactor in the determination of output time. Given the relatively coarsegranularity of today's Windows XP access point detection time, thisrequirement should not degrade performance.

Regardless of whether the verifier that protects access to a particularresource is local or remote, some local device must be consuming theauthentication information. Often, the verifier will allow a user tocontinue accessing a particular resource while authenticationinformation has been recently received, revoking this access if theauthentication information has not been recently received or if it wasreceived at particularly low signal strength. Although this device mightbe a mobile telephone, PDA, or other processing device, manyapplications today will likely use a computer running Windows. For thisreason, we focus on the design issues relevant to this platform,although other platforms such as Linux can of course be used. As is wellknown, Windows has evolved a layered approach to support networkprotocols and peripherals such as network interface cards.

In the present illustrative embodiment, authentication software runningon the computer gains access to the authentication information sent bythe token by opening a socket to a Network Driver InterfaceSpecification (NDIS) protocol driver. See “Introduction to the Win32NDIS API,” Rawether.net, Printing Communications Associates, Inc. Incontrast to a complex protocol driver like that implementing the TCP/IPprotocol, a protocol driver suitable for use in this embodiment simplyreports beacon frames to the authentication software. To do this, itrequests that the NDIS Miniport Driver provide notification of onlybeacon frames received over the 802.11 interface. It further asks thedriver to scan for access points by setting theOID_(—)802_(—)11_BSSID_LIST_SCAN. Once this is done, six seconds later,it can ask for the updated list by setting theOID_(—)802_(—)11_BSSID_LIST.

Again, the particular details of the illustrative embodiments describedin this Appendix should not be construed as limitations of the presentinvention.

What is claimed is:
 1. A first processing device for use in a wirelessnetwork, the wireless network comprising at least one access point andone or more stations, the first processing device comprising: a memory;a processor coupled to the memory; and network interface circuitrycoupled to the processor; the processor being operative to control thetransmission of information via the network interface circuitry in amanner that emulates standard communications of an access point of thewireless network although the first processing device is not configuredto operate as an actual access point of the wireless network; wherein asecond processing device receiving the transmitted information is ableto determine therefrom that the transmitted information originates froman emulated access point rather than an actual access point, the secondprocessing device responding to such a condition by utilizing thetransmitted information in a manner distinct from its utilization ofinformation received from the actual access point of the wirelessnetwork.
 2. The first processing device of claim 1 wherein thetransmitted information comprises authentication information.
 3. Thefirst processing device of claim 1 wherein said first processing devicecomprises a handheld wireless authentication token.
 4. The firstprocessing device of claim 1 wherein said first processing devicecomprises a radio frequency identification (RFID) tag.
 5. The firstprocessing device of claim 2 wherein the authentication informationcomprises a one-time password.
 6. The first processing device of claim 1wherein the wireless network comprises a wireless network operating inaccordance with an 802.11 standard and the actual access point of thewireless network comprises an access point operating in accordance withthe 802.11 standard.
 7. The first processing device of claim 6 whereinthe transmitted information comprises at least one of an 802.11 beaconframe and an 802.11 probe response frame.
 8. The first processing deviceof claim 7 wherein the transmitted information comprises authenticationinformation carried at least in part in a service set identifier (SSID)field of said at least one frame.
 9. The first processing device ofclaim 1 wherein the transmitted information is transmitted by the firstprocessing device responsive to a user command.
 10. The first processingdevice of claim 1 wherein the transmitted information is transmitted bythe first processing device periodically or continuously without userintervention.
 11. The first processing device of claim 1 wherein atleast a portion of the transmitted information is configured prior totransmission responsive to its relation to a particular time interval ofa set of predetermined time intervals.
 12. The first processing deviceof claim 1 wherein at least a portion of the transmitted information isconfigured prior to transmission responsive to a user command.
 13. Thefirst processing device of claim 2 wherein the authenticationinformation comprises a sequence of values corresponding to images of ahash chain.
 14. The first processing device of claim 2 wherein theauthentication information is encrypted prior to transmission using akey established through a pairing protocol carried out between the firstand second processing devices.
 15. The first processing device of claim14 wherein the pairing protocol supports key confirmation by allowing auser to compare a confirmation code produced by the first processingdevice with a confirmation code produced by the second processingdevice.
 16. The first processing device of claim 14 wherein the pairingprotocol utilizes a trusted server to authorize pairing of the firstprocessing device with the second processing device.
 17. The firstprocessing device of claim 2 wherein the authentication information isutilizable by the second processing device in conjunction withsupplementary information to generate combined authenticationinformation of the first and second processing devices, said combinedauthentication information being presented to at least one server forjoint authentication of the first and second processing devices.
 18. Thefirst processing device of claim 17 wherein the authenticationinformation comprises a sequence of values corresponding to images of ahash chain, and said second processing device generates said combinedauthentication information using the hash chain images and a private keyof a certificate held by the second processing device.
 19. The firstprocessing device of claim 2 wherein the authentication information isdetermined at least in part utilizing a base point on an elliptic curve.20. The first processing device of claim 1 wherein the transmittedinformation comprises information that is utilizable by the secondprocessing device to perform at least one of an encryption operation anda decryption operation.
 21. The first processing device of claim 1wherein the transmitted information comprises information that isutilizable by the second processing device to generate a joint digitalsignature on behalf of both the first and second processing devices. 22.A method for use in a first processing device in a wireless network, thewireless network comprising at least one access point and one or morestations, the method comprising the steps of: generating information inthe first processing device; and transmitting the information from thefirst processing device in a manner that emulates standardcommunications of an access point of the wireless network although thefirst processing device is not configured to operate as an actual accesspoint of the wireless network; wherein a second processing devicereceiving the transmitted information is able to determine therefromthat the transmitted information originates from an emulated accesspoint rather than an actual access point, the second processing deviceresponding to such a condition by utilizing the transmitted informationin a manner distinct from its utilization of information received fromthe actual access point of the wireless network.
 23. An article ofmanufacture comprising a non-transitory computer-readable storage mediumstoring one or more software programs which when executed by a processorimplement the steps of the method of claim
 22. 24. A processing devicefor use in a wireless network, the wireless network comprising at leastone access point and one or more stations, the processing devicecomprising: a memory; a processor coupled to the memory; and networkinterface circuitry coupled to the processor; the processor beingoperative to control the reception of information via the networkinterface circuitry, the received information being transmitted byanother processing device in a manner that emulates standardcommunications of an access point of the wireless network although theother processing device is not configured to operate as an actual accesspoint of the wireless network; wherein the processor is furtheroperative to determine from the received information that saidinformation originates from an emulated access point rather than anactual access point and to respond to such a condition by utilizing thereceived information in a manner distinct from its utilization ofinformation received from the actual access point of the wirelessnetwork.
 25. The processing device of claim 24 wherein said processingdevice having said processor, memory and network interface circuitrycomprises a given one of the stations of the wireless network.
 26. Theprocessing device of claim 25 wherein the given station responds to thecondition by extracting authentication information from the transmittedinformation and initiating an authentication process using theauthentication information.
 27. The processing device of claim 24wherein said processing device having said processor, memory and networkinterface circuitry comprises a computer.
 28. A method for use in aprocessing device in a wireless network, the wireless network comprisingat least one access point and one or more stations, the methodcomprising the steps of: receiving information transmitted by anotherprocessing device, the information being transmitted in a manner thatemulates standard communications of an access point of the wirelessnetwork although the other processing device is not configured tooperate as an actual access point of the wireless network; determiningfrom the received information that said information originates from anemulated access point rather than an actual access point; and respondingto such a condition by utilizing the received information in a mannerdistinct from its utilization of information received from the actualaccess point of the wireless network.
 29. An article of manufacturecomprising a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing oneor more software programs which when executed by a processor implementthe steps of the method of claim 28.